Growing Community

Downtown Resource Center/Main Street Iowa

The Iowa Downtown Resource Center is where Main Street Iowa, the Department's highly successful downtown revitalization program is housed. Iowa’s downtowns serve as living models of the sustainable community concepts being embraced throughout the country. Some of the sustainability concepts brought to life in Iowa downtowns include pedestrian friendly, compact development, historic preservation, diversity in housing, mixed land uses, community collaboration, and strong local economies.

Downtown Resource Center/Main Street Iowa

FY 2009 Accomplishments:

• Provided training, on-site technical assistance, presentations and information to representatives from approximately 200 Iowa communities
• Made presentations to approximately 2,500 Iowans at community meetings
• Provided continuing on-site technical assistance and support to flood damaged Main Street Iowa communities
• In collaboration with CDBG, twenty-five post-flood business assistance workshops were scheduled throughout the state to aid in supporting impacted local businesses
• In collaboration with CDBG, developed the Downtown Revitalization and Community Sustainability funds
• Attracted over 245 people from approximately 80 Iowa communities to the 2008 Iowa Downtown Summit held in Charles City, six weeks after the floods impacted their downtown
• Awarded Main Street Challenge grants totaling about $617,000 to 14 renovation projects in Main Street Iowa communities
• Selected four new Main Street communities – Ames, Colfax, Fort Madison, and Manning
• Selected three Urban Neighborhood Main Street districts – Czech Village/New Bohemia (Cedar Rapids), Hilltop Campus Village (Davenport), and Sixth Avenue Corridor (Des Moines)
• Held Main Street Awards celebrating the best in downtown revitalization. Approximately 430 Iowans attended to recognize award recipients
• Worked within IDED to implement Green Streets criteria into all Main Street, CDBG and HOME funded grant projects
• Participated in technical assistance services for IDED’s two pilot green demonstration communities of West Union and Woodbine
• Participated in sustainable streetscape design technical assistance visits for Belle Plaine
• Conducted comprehensive assessment visits to two Main Street Iowa communities – Ottumwa and Mount Vernon
• Conducted intensive downtown assessment visits in six Iowa communities – DeWitt, Kellogg, Lansing, Manning, Tripoli and Winterset
• Partnered with ISU to conduct Main Street Makeover Marathon with four local businesses in Elkader 
• Partnered with the State Historic Preservation Office to hold a joint training workshop in Ottumwa which attracted 230 participants
• Conducted seven ICN training sessions for Main Street Iowa communities
• Provided conceptual drawings for 200 potential building projects in Main Street communities
• Provided over 200 on-site technical assistance visits to Main Street Iowa communities on design, real estate development, business improvement, market analysis, interior design, minority outreach, fund raising, board training, workplan development, promotions, and visioning
• Translated Main Street Iowa informational documents into Spanish for use by our participating Main Street communities

Main Street Iowa Economic Impact FY 2009

Additional Information:

• Iowa leads the nation with a 50 percent retention rate of Main Street communities who have participated for nineteen or more years. National average is 10 percent.
• Iowa leads the nation in Great American Main Street Award winning communities with seven: Dubuque (1995), Bonaparte (1996), Corning (1998), Keokuk (2000), Elkader (2001), Cedar Falls (2002), Burlington (2004)
• Iowa leads the nation with 31 Nationally Certified Main Street Managers (CMSM) having been so designated by the National Trust for Historic Preservation
• Iowa leads the nation with the largest number of communities with populations under 5,000 participating in the Rural Main Street program, 26, ranging in size from Bonaparte, population 458 to Osceola, population 4,659
• Iowa is the only state in the nation to have received six HUD Grants totaling $3.9 million to support IDED’s Main Street Iowa program. These grants leveraged an additional $25 million investment into fifty-six downtown building projects
• Since FY 1986, Main Street Iowa communities have experienced a net gain of 3,215 downtown businesses employing 9,142 Iowans full time
• Since FY 1986, private sector investment into downtown buildings in Main Street communities has totaled $850 million
• The State of Iowa has seen a $74 return in private sector investment for every public dollar expended to operate the state Main Street program since its inception in FY 1986
• Over 1.7 million volunteer hours have been invested in Main Street Iowa communities since 1990
• Main Street Iowa communities have completed 7,511 downtown building improvement projects since 1986

Main Street Challenge Grants

Main Street Iowa Challenge Grants utilize funding provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Neighborhood Initiative (NI) account for special projects. All Iowa Main Street districts are eligible for the Main Street Challenge Grant funds. The Main Street organization may apply on behalf of one project/property. Eligible projects include building rehabilitations, facade improvements, new construction to infill vacant property, open air performance structures and improvements to a series of properties. View the Searchable Project Portfolio.